Being and Doing

Exodus 19:4-6

“‘You have seen what I did to the Egyptians, and how I bore you on eagles’ wings and brought you to Myself. Now therefore, if you will indeed obey My voice and keep My covenant, then you shall be a special treasure to Me above all people; for all the earth is Mine. And you shall be to Me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.’ These are the words which you shall speak to the children of Israel.”

1 Peter 2:9

But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him Who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light;


In Exodus 19, Yahweh invited descendants of Israel to become His nation through the covenant that He was about to reveal to them in Exodus 20. Peter wrote that believers in Jesus have become what Yahweh desired.

His own special people – the Body of Christ, His family.

A holy nation – set apart to Yahweh, citizens of heaven scattered throughout the earth, influencing the culture wherever they go.

A kingdom of priests – representing the nations around us in the throne room of heaven, seeking and finding grace and mercy for the needs of those with whom we interact.

The current purposes of the ekklesia of Jesus in the earth include colonizing the earth with the culture of heaven, to the end that we convert citizens of the earth to citizenship in heaven, and to becoming members of Yahweh’s family.

In congregations where our purpose is only to increase church membership, we are taking up spaceĀ in the dugout but not changing anything on the playing field. The consequence is that we continue to lose the game. Other teams continue to have more influence on culture and eternity than we do.